Need Advice on Husky 55 & Husky 455 Breakdown

[timberscribe]

There are several issues being discussed in this thread. Let's just clear this one. Some, but not all Husky's have a hole in the clutch end of the shaft, with a horizontal hole that leads to the clutch bearing. My 353 has one. Easy to use - hard to tell how much grease is in there without pulling the clutch drum.

Do not put grease on a shaft end without the hole. You do not want to grease your clutch shoes.

Philbert

Yes, thanks, the grease issue has been settled: 55s and 455s evidently don't have the grease-through feature that some Huskys do (or did). There IS a hole at the end of the shaft, but it doesn't lead anywhere. Odd that the owner's manual indicates one should grease the bearing in this manner, but there you have it.

Sorry if I've confused things with multiple facts, but there are a lot of potential variables here. I agree with several of you that the likely culprit (as with most such failures) is heat, now I'm just trying to figure out why.

 

[timberscribe]

Issue Resolved

...I'm pretty sure.

As several of you suggested, the two Husky 55/455 breakdowns evidently did not originate in clutch bearing failure, nor did lubrication (from whatever source) appear to have been a factor.

I did some more checking today, including with an experienced saw repairman and the manufacturer of the relevant parts, and this appears to be what happened: I allowed the replaceable drive socket on each saw to become unduly worn, leading to a fractured clutch drum, pieces of which took out the clutch bearing. So what looked like bearing failure leading to clutch drum damage was really clutch drum failure leading to bearing damage.

Evidently one of several possible results of overworn drive sockets is fracturing of the clutch drum's splined hub (the narrow portion of the drum over which the drive socket fits); the specific cause is hammering from repeated bottoming-out of the drive links as they pass over the worn socket. The repeated percussion on the splined hub can lead to metal fatigue and fracture.

I do monitor wear on these drive sprockets, but I was waiting too long to replace them. Both Husky and Oregon recommend as a general guideline that the drive socket should be replaced every two chains, advice I had been following. But Oregon's "Maintenance and Safety Manual" adds ". . . or sooner." As with most mechanical maintenance schedules, it's all subject to actual wear, which can vary depending on cutting conditions, sawing technique, and many other variables. Even with these two saws I observed differences: in the case of the 55, the chain's drive links were not burred or rough; on the 455 (whose sprocket was worn more deeply), they were. I should have caught this. Oregon's "Maintenance and Safety Manual" indicates that sprocket drive rims with edge wear deeper than 1/64" should be replaced. Both of mine were worn beyond that. Clearly I need to replace them more frequently. They are certainly cheaper than clutch drums, which is of course one of the advantages of this design over the combined clutch/drum units used on some small saws.

I very much appreciate those of you who made constructive suggestions; all of it helped me eliminate some non-issues and and narrow down the possibilities until I found out what was behind breakdown. Now when I replace the parts, I know what to watch for to hopefully prevent this problem in the future. Along the way I've picked up some useful maintenance and sawing tips and have gotten to know my equipment better.

Seems to me that's what this forum is for. Thanks for letting me be a part of it.

Timberscribe

 

[Axlerod74]

I'm glad you got to the bottom of the problem. Sounds like you found the right repair man. To answer some your other questions........The H80 vanguard chain is terrible...............as you have found out. The woodland pro 30RC is good chain and is a good match on the 455. On my 55 I always ran 18" .325 with great success. There is a big performance difference in these saws. As mentioned before, I think both saws are under powered for slab work but if you take your time and do good maintenance, you can get good service life out of these. I have found that with the floating rims, you have to replace them much sooner than the spur sprockets. As long as you can get them cheap, the rims are fine. In the last year, rims have jumped in price so I usually shop for bargins. I run floating rims on all of my saws however, the spur sprocket is a good set up that I would not hesitate to use.

On the 455 oiler, according to IPL there was an option in 2006 for the floating rim set-up. In years before and after, I see no mention of it. They are available and seem like they work but if in question, go with the spur. Other guys here run that saw and could answer for sure.

Have some rep!

 

[timberscribe]

I'm glad you got to the bottom of the problem. Sounds like you found the right repair man. To answer some your other questions........The H80 vanguard chain is terrible...............as you have found out. The woodland pro 30RC is good chain and is a good match on the 455. On my 55 I always ran 18" .325 with great success. There is a big performance difference in these saws. As mentioned before, I think both saws are under powered for slab work but if you take your time and do good maintenance, you can get good service life out of these. I have found that with the floating rims, you have to replace them much sooner than the spur sprockets. As long as you can get them cheap, the rims are fine. In the last year, rims have jumped in price so I usually shop for bargins. I run floating rims on all of my saws however, the spur sprocket is a good set up that I would not hesitate to use.

On the 455 oiler, according to IPL there was an option in 2006 for the floating rim set-up. In years before and after, I see no mention of it. They are available and seem like they work but if in question, go with the spur. Other guys here run that saw and could answer for sure.

Have some rep!

Axlerod74

Thanks again for your insight on all of this.

I've heard some strong opinions about the spur sprocket set up being harder on chains, but I really don't know from experience. I imagine rims would have to still climb quite a bit in price before reaching the price of a new spur/drum units. In any case, I'm obviously going to be paying closer attention to rim wear.

Couple of follow up questions:

--just how often do you end up replacing rims on average?
--any suggestions for a good source for those "rim bargains" you mentioned?

Thanks again for the tips; nothing like the voice of experience!

Timberscribe

 

[Philbert]

Glad that you got to the bottom of your problem. Thanks for sharing what you learned.

The Oregon, STIHL, and other manuals often have illustrations of chain and sprocket wear. It's hard to do on the Internet, but if many of the guys on here could actually look at your saws, they probably would have recognized an over-worn sprocket right away. Photos can help sometimes, if they are clear, and if you are photographing the right thing!

The next step is for you to figure out why your sprockets may be wearing faster than expected. This may have to do with the part quality (OEM, brand name, or after-market?), how tight you run your chain, the type of cutting you do, etc., etc., etc.

Maybe you just end up replacing them more frequently.

Philbert

 

[Axlerod74]

By the time you go through a chain, it is time to inspect or replace the rim. You may actually get through two chains depending on variables but check after one. If using .325 chain, you will quickly get into the drum as the rim has less "meat" and the drive links of the chain will quickly protrude through the bottom of the rim after moderate wear. With most 3\8 rims there is a little more room for wear as the rim is thicker.

I usually watch Baileys for rim sales. Currently, sale prices on oregon rims look like about $3.99 and they used to put Arbormax rims on sale for $2.99. I jumped on the Arbormax when ever I could but have not seen them for a while.

 

[timberscribe]

Thanks Again

Philbert and Axlerod74,

Thanks for your insight and tips.

I use Oregon rims from a mail order house; none of them have been worn to the point one of you described (chain actually cut through), but evidently damage to the clutch drum can occur short of this.

I'm guessing the problem will be solved through replacing sprockets sooner. One useful tip from the Oregon manual is that if the chain feels "ratchety" when advanced by hand (as when filing), that's a good sign that the sprocket rim is sufficiently work to warrant replacement. I've actually noted this in the past, but didn't realize what it meant. My bad.

I've received new clutch drum bearings, but the clutch drum for the 55 is backordered. Thankfully I've got other things I can do in the meanwhile, but I hope to have the 55 (my main and favorite saw) back up, then I'll do the 455.

As to the cause of drum wear, I don't know if I'll be able to find out or not. I don't think I'm overtightening my chains, but I'll check on that to be sure. They're Oregon sprockets, which I think are the same source as the OEM sprockets on new saws, so I don't think they are substandard quality. On a probably unrelated side note, I noticed the replacement clutch drum bearings have thinner cages than the ones I've used in the past. With these it's possible to pop out the individual roller bearings from the cage with finger pressure. Maybe it's not significant (I recall someone saying they've seen some with plastic cages, but they seem to work OK), but maybe I should check on that, too.

If you have any additional thoughts, I'm all ears, and thanks again for giving me the benefit of your experience.

Timberscribe